Anne Maclean studied Social Sciences at Bradford in the 1970s and chose to make a donation to the Bradford Futures Scholarships to provide financial help to current students. In particular, she expressed an interest in helping a female student, preferably with a disability, based on her own experience.
Earlier this term, Anne travelled from her home in Wales with her husband, Esdale, to meet student Samea Mahboob, and hear first-hand about the impact her donation is making.
Anne, who has Multiple Sclerosis, said: “There are a number of reasons why I chose to donate. One of them being such fond memories of my time at Bradford.
“As a student, I benefitted such a lot from all the experiences I gained here, helping me to think in different ways. I wanted other people to have the same opportunities I had.
"I was particularly keen that it should firstly be a woman because I became increasingly aware that women in work didn’t have the same opportunities as men. Another aspect is, on a personal level, as someone who has a disability, I felt they could use the extra support to help them cope with dealing with a disability.”
Samea is a single parent, who has a child living with chronic health conditions, Crohn’s and Colitis. She left a full-time job in mental health services to start a degree in Social Work.
She said: “Choosing to return to full-time education as a single mum and a mature student wasn’t easy, especially as this course requires placements, which means I am not able to work part-time.
“Receiving the Bradford Futures Fund scholarship has helped me in so many ways, from financial support towards utility bills; putting food on the table, to travel to and from university.
“Believe it or not, one of the most significant impacts of the scholarship was being able to buy a birthday gift for my child. Before the scholarship, I thought I wouldn’t be able to afford to buy him one without worrying about what else I should spend that on.”
Samea chose to study Social Work following her grandmother’s diagnosis of dementia and saw how language and cultural barriers made it difficult for her grandmother to access the services she needed.
Samea added: “This scholarship has also helped with my mental, emotional and psychological health, as leaving a job and entering full-time education as the sole provider for the household was the biggest life-changing risk I have ever taken in my life.”
On the video, Samea told Anne: “It’s really important to have donors like yourself because you have facilitated that education. Honestly, a massive thank you. I’m privileged to see you in person.”
Anne, originally from Belfast, said she was “lucky” to have received a grant to enable her to go to university.
She said of meeting Samea: “It has been very rewarding to meet Samea and to know that something I can do can make such a difference in someone else’s life.
“My message to anyone who would like to donate to the Bradford Futures Fund is it’s a very rewarding experience. Now that I’ve met Samea I can really appreciate the impact this donation has made to her and her life.”